WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2019/97 by Iñigo MÉNDEZ DE VIGO to the Council. Europol Convention
Date: 1997-06-18
Institutions: European Parliament, MENDEZ DE VIGO
Subjects: EU Member State, Europol, child, child protection, crime against individuals, fight against crime, human rights, ratification of an agreement, sexual offence, trafficking in human beings

17. 3. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 82/11

Among  the  more  vulnerable  groups  it  includes  unemployed  women,  unemployed  youth  and  the  long-term
unemployed (although experience has shown that, without any specific reference, measures for the long-term
unemployed tend to be targeted at young people).

It is deeply disappointing that older workers have not been included in the list of the more vulnerable groups
requiring assistance.

Can the Council explain why this is so and whether it is possible to rectify this omission?

Answer

(28 October 1997)

The  Council  does  not  agree  with  the  Honourable  Member(cid:146)s  assertion  that  the  situation  of  unemployed  old
workers is overhadowed in the Community(cid:146)s social agenda.

The Honourable Member will know that one of the issues given priority by the common strategy for employment
in  the  European  Union  ›  which  was  launched  at  the  Essen  European  Council  meeting  and  confirmed  and
amplified in the Dublin Declaration on Employment (December 1996) › is the situation of unemployed older
workers, as evidenced in the reaffirmed desire to combat long-term unemployment. This priority is explicitly
indicated in the Commission(cid:146)s communication entitled (cid:147)Action on Employment: A Confidence Pact(cid:148) and in the
Joint Report on Employment which was submitted to the European Council in Dublin in December 1996.

Lastly, in Amsterdam on 16 June 1997 the European Council adopted a Resolution on growth and employment
and decided to hold an extraordinary summit in November 1997 on fighting unemployment, which should lend
fresh  impetus  to  job  creation.  The  Commission  and  the  Council  are  invited,  in  cooperation  with  the  EIB,  to
prepare a progress report on the matter. Other European institutions, such as the European Parliament and the
Economic and Social Committee, are also working on contributions to the debate for the extraordinary European
Council meeting.

(98/C 82/13)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1592/97

by Susan Waddington (PSE) to the Council

(12 May 1997)

Subject: EUROPOL Convention

How do the Member States explain and justify the delay in the ratification of the Europol Convention, which is
hampering the fight against the sexual exploitation of children?

(98/C 82/14)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2019/97

by In(cid:152) igo Me·ndez de Vigo (PPE) to the Council

(18 June 1997)

Subject: Europol Convention

Mrs  Gradin,  the  Commissioner  responsible  for  internal  affairs  and  justice,  has  made  a  number  of  statements
calling on the Member States to ratify the Europol Convention as soon as possible.

Can the Council say whether ratification is being envisaged in the future?

Joint answer
to Written Questions E-1592/97 and E-2019/97

(16 October 1997)

Member States have committed themselves to endeavour to have the Convention ratified before the end of 1997.
So  far  the  United  Kingdom  has  ratified  the  Convention.  Several  other  ratifications  are  imminent.  The
K4 Committee within the Council will regularly review the state of ratification.

The Council notes that the enlarged mandate of the European Drugs Unit allows already action by this body with
regard to the fights against trafficking in human beings.